There are lots of Cons across the country for many reasons and there are a bunch of Comic Cons put on by many companies out there, but my Heroes of Comic Con are Wizard World!
Anaheim Wizard World is not even close to one of the big Cons they put on in other cities, but it's not small by any means and they have what a lot of the giant Comic Cons are lacking... Comics, Comic Artists and Creators, and a good sized artist alley with plenty of walking room.
Oh yes, they have the major corporate sponsors and great celebrities to meet and geek out about; but they have not forgotten the reason that Comic Cons rose up like a pheonix all over the United States. You can have all the actors, directors, producers, and studio executives in the world at your Con to promote their Comic based movie; but that seems a little insulting to the original creators, artists, and publishers, stuffed away in a small corner of artist alley, that worked hard to get those published in the first place. I understand that the Cons are another business that needs to show a profit, but now the Cons are acting like the suits by screwing over the little guys and squashing their creative spirits. The world needs more Tony Stark types with the corporate power and the will to stand up for what's right. The starving artists!
What happened to protecting the arts and feeding the creative spirit in this society? I am not content with the usual remaking of old tv shows, comic books, and old movies into revamped pieces of crap. It's so easy for them to put out these movies and they know that all the fans will run out to see it... no matter what. Most go because they are fans of the original work and then their are the bloggers, podcasters, and streamers that need something to talk about and bash. Well most of them are so fanatical that they will never be happy and only pick it apart, because they wrote their own version of it. However, that doesn't mean the rest of the fans aren't out their paying attention too. We don't want you destroying the purity of what a real Comic Book provided all of us as kids. As adults we still need that fantasy world and an escape from the realities of our real lives even more then we did as children. Did the suits forget that kid inside? Stop counting your money and look up to count smiles instead, and the more smiles you see the more money you will be able to count in the end. Happiness is it's own currency and it is much more satisfying to know that you have made something that people enjoy and want to feel like they are apart of. In my opinion.
Marvel is excluded from my rant, because they have turned a corner in their film making, in the recent years, and representation of the original materials that they are trying to honor and pay homage too.
Well you too can be a part of Wizard World. They have not forgotten about the little people that are struggling to make ends meat or trying to get noticed by one of the top three... Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse. Their Artist Alley was very large and had nice big aisles for walking and stopping to talk with any artist that catches your eye or an artist that worked on your boy hood/girl hood hero. I ran into friends, well known artists, and some familiar artists I've met at other Cons; but at Wizard World Anaheim they were not cramped together like herded cattle. Many artists told me that it was a very refreshing experience and that they felt that it provided better opportunity to talk with fans and reach out to make new fans. I have become a fan of a few new artists because of their set up in Anaheim, but I will talk about them on the podcast instead of the blog.
You want your celebrity fix?
Wizard World still has some great actors, actresses, directors, and producers that are amazingly accessible; which was another topic that I heard many people talking about, besides my crew. It's true too! Not only were they very accessible, but they were happy to be there and extremely kind, nice, friendly, and patient as hell with my obnoxious ass. Not to mention they were good to my merry band of misfits...my crew! I can't change me; though many have tried and lost that war. Of course their are still lines for your favorites and you will get your chances to have a nerd melt down in front of them before their publicist calls over security to remove you and your overly excited freaky ways. That may or may not have almost happened to me when I met John Schneider! Bring your wallet though, because nothing in life is free. Which Charles Fleischer was good enough to remind me every time I walked by... followed by a don't forget FU! UStream.com/FU is his show every Tuesday night, and no I'm not sure if he was reminding me to plug his show or just F-ing with me. I suspect it was both! Ernie Hudson was there in full on Ghostbusters garb and was genuinely jealous of some proton packs that some fans had made. I too am bummed that Stargate Universe was canceled, but what isn't a bummer is being able to meet Alaina Huffman from the show and also from Smallville. She has a series currently on MTV.com called Agent Mom that you should check out. If you only watch the SyFy channel and that's not good enough then how about Cylon 6? That's right Battle Star Galactica's Tricia Helfer was signing photos from GSG. She also has a great project coming up that you can hear about on our YouTube interview with her and see clips from her panel. http://actingoutlaws.com/
That is just a few personal favorite celebrities,of mine, that are there; but yours might be there too. You have to go to find out.
"Down the Road Show" has exclusive footage from Anaheim Wizard World panels and candid interviews with some of our favorite celebrities,that other crews were unable to get, and we will be adding it our site real soon; plus some interesting clubs, fans, and worthy causes. There is a variety of activity at Wizard World and don't forget to pick up some souvenirs from any of the vendors; and find that comic book you have been missing from your collection.
Check out Wizard World's website to find out which cities "Down the Road Show" will be representing at.
http://WizardWorld.com
This is Entertainment that's all up in your face!
K.C. Murdock
CEO Murdock Worldwide Entertainment Corp.
Executive Producer/Co-Creator/Co-Host
"Down the Road Show"
http://downtheroadshow.com
Major thanks to Bob MacKay, http://pitpasstv.com, for stepping in last second and shooting the awesome footage we got on Friday and Saturday at Wizard World Anaheim. He truly saved me in a pinch.
Thank you John O'Toole for riding down the road from Utah with complete strangers to help this weekend. You were invaluable. Thanks buddy.
Thank you to Mike Granch, aka Mayhem, for doing anything asked of you including camera work on Sunday. You were a big help.
Thank you to Joseph Coleman and Miguel Espinoza for taking still photos of our weekend for us and capturing the spirit of DTRShow behind the scenes. You guys rock and made the weekend that much more fun.
Thank you Kyle Burlington for sitting in the booth for the majority of, his first ever, the Comic Con and editing together the videos that our fans will be enjoying soon.
Thank you partner, J.C. Tregarthen, for being their to ask the questions along side of me and to moderate the costume contest on Saturday night. That was a ton of fun. See you soon fellow podcast host.
And a special thanks to our sponsor who made the entire weekend possible. Thank you Byron and Suzanne Davis of Oggi's Anaheim/Costa Mesa and thank you Patty Young.
Oggi's Pizza and Brewery - Anaheim
12362 Chapman Ave.
Garden Grove, CA, 92840
714-534-3599
Location:Anaheim, California
